A severely disabled Teesside woman was left stranded in her wheelchair when a driver turned her away from his specially adapted bus.

A severely disabled Teesside woman was left stranded in her wheelchair when a driver turned her away from his specially adapted bus.

Tracey Tunnicliffe, 23, of Acklam was paralysed from the neck down in a fall from the fourth floor window of a flat in Newcastle two years ago.

The fall left her unable to walk and only able to move her arms slightly. She has tried to get on with her life by going out on regular shopping trips by bus with her mum Carol Bylett, 43, of Brotton.

But she was left furious when one of her life-line trips was ruined when the driver of the adapted Arriva North East bus let able-bodied people aboard his vehicle then told Tracey she could not get on because there was no room.

Arriva North East today issued an "unreserved" apology following the incident.

And the firm admits wheelchair users should be allowed access to buses "wherever possible."

This case follows hard on the heels of one recently featured in the Gazette involving disabled toddler Amy Scoby, of Easterside.

Her angry family said cerebral palsy sufferer Amy was refused access to an Arriva bus for the fourth time in a year recently.

Tracey, who recently moved to a home in Acklam from the Marske Cheshire Home said: "I get this sort of trouble all the time in all walks of life."

Her mother added: "She shouldn't be treated like this - neither should anyone else.

"These buses are specifically designed for disabled people and have a priority area for wheelchairs and users. So why all this trouble?"

Tracey's mother told how the two had waited for an hour for a specially adapted bus to pick them up from the stop at Uptons in Redcar.

Despite being one of the first in the queue she was kept waiting until everyone else had climbed aboard and then told there was no room.

She said: "When one came, the driver refused to let us on.

"He let all the able bodied people on first and then laughed at us and said we would be better off getting a bus from Redcar clock tower and drove off.

"I complained to Arriva and their customer services manager wrote with an apology.

"He said they were updating their fleet and all buses were being replaced with easy-access vehicles.

"Also, the driver would be traced and if disciplinary action was deemed necessary, it would be taken against him - but we have heard nothing."

Tracey and Carol then had to go several hundred yards down the street and wait for another adapted bus before they could go home.

Carol said this was the second of two incidents involving the company on the Redcar to Marske route.

She said in the first incident the bus driver would not help them to pull the ring pull to release the special disabled ramp to gain entry by wheelchair onto the bus.

And that he then made them put the ramp back when they were getting off as the doors wouldn't shut.

Arriva North East's operations director Iain McInroy said of the latest case: "I would like to unreservedly apologise to Ms Tunnicliffe for any embarrassment or inconvenience caused.

"Arriva North East expects all drivers to be courteous and helpful at all times and to allow wheelchair users access to buses wherever possible. The operation of the access ramp is part of a driver's duties for which they receive training.